hkskyline's 2012 in SUZHOU, China

[hkskyline]

A Suzhou Day Trip
The 0838 train from Shanghai bound for Wuxi would take 31 minutes to reach Suzhou, a very feasible day trip option. Upon arrival, a horde of travel agents gathered around the single exit trying to drum up business for their guided day trips. They were everywhere. Not interested, I headed upstairs trying to look for the exit. Suzhou Railway Station is under construction, and there was a new building shell already just next to the current station. Although from the maps, it was possible to walk to the old city, in reality, it was not possible. Luckily, the first bus I saw, route 1, was headed in the right direction and soon I was on the way.

Bus route 1 travels along the north-south thoroughfare, Renmin Lu. It was only 2 stops from the train station to my first attraction, the North Temple Pagoda. With a history dating back some 1700 years to the Three Kingdoms Period, the wood pagoda has 9 levels. 25 yuan later, I headed up and up and up for a panoramic view of Suzhou.





























Heading east, the Humble Administrator’s Garden is only a 15 minute walk from the pagoda along Xibei Jie. The street fronting the garden has been pedestrianized, although quiet but deadly electric scooters still ply the stretch. The admission was not humble like the garden’s name though, and there were plenty of tourists on hand willing to pay the 70 yuan to get in.

































This garden is the largest in Suzhou and dates from the early 16th century. Using many combinations of water, islands, and hills, it has numerous viewpoints. However, enjoying them would be hard as it is now a key attraction to tour groups. Luckily, I arrived fairly early but towards the end of my 1.5 hour visit, the crowds got a bit crazy.























































More : http://www.globalphotos.org/suzhou.htm

[hkskyline]

Lion’s Grove Garden is a short walk to the south of the Humble Administrator’s Garden. This garden is quite different as it uses lots of artificial rock formations and man-made caves, which can get quite treacherous to navigate in the rain as the rocks have been smoothened by tourist traffic and are quite slippery. The garden dates from the 14th century (Yuan Dynasty), and became a popular location for scholars and royalty. It subsequently was purchased by renowned architect I.M. Pei, who donated it to the state.







































































Outside the Lion’s Grove Garden, the neighbouring streets are full of activity with hawkers and souvenir stores selling stuff you don't need.

[hkskyline]

The Twin Pagodas are 7 storeys tall each and are believed to date back a 1000 years. You can't climb the towers, so the admission fee is to only enjoy the small gardens that wrap around them. A huge wall makes them almost invisible from the outside.









My main objective for Suzhou was to visit the gardens. I arrived at the Temple of Mystery and pondered whether the 10 yuan admission would be good value for money since it was just one building that didn’t look particularly interesting or different from other Chinese temples. In the end, I opted to look from the outside and walked around the market street that surrounds the temple, which now sells mostly tourist gadgets.









The Lingering Garden also has rock formations to mimick artificial mountains, but on a much smaller scale than Lion’s Grove. Perhaps it was later in the afternoon and the tour groups have left Suzhou already, so I got some more peace and tranquility that rightfully belongs to any garden.







































With tired feet, I headed to the bus stop and searched for a route that would take me to the Blue Wave Pavilion further down the main thoroughfare. It was a quick trip but the 2 yuan was well spent. The Blue Wave Pavilion is the oldest existing garden in the city, dating back to the Song Dynasty some 900 years ago. The design is simple, with lots of greenery to shade the paths.